On the blood soaked sand, two 17 year olds were eyeing each other. One showed a large grin and wore casual though rather thick clothes, while the other wore enchanted leather armor and had a serious look.
“Are you sure this is a good idea, Ana?” asked Arthur from above. “What if he goes overboard?”
“So?” the girl answered with a shrug. Her lips expressed innocence, while her eyes were dead serious. “That’s the whole point.”
“Fight!”
As soon as the gong rang, Ethan sprinted towards his opponent. Kai rapidly ate a couple of pills which made his muscles bulge and his veins visible. He then took out three scrolls and ripped them, each one giving him some sort of a passive boost. Finally, he pulled out a knife and shot an ice spike towards Ethan.
Despite these preparations, his opponent was still grinning like a maniac. Ethan grabbed the flying spike with both hands and shoved his own mana inside it.
It was a bit of a tricky operation, but thanks to the difference in mana and skill, he managed to expel the boy’s energy and render the attack useless. After winking at his opponent, he grabbed it like a club and continued his sprint.
‘So what?’ Unperturbed by the display, Kai welcomed the enemy. When he was just three feet away, the boy froze the ground and sent ice shards towards him. Ethan shoved his spike into the frozen sand and used it as leverage to avoid the shards and to lift his legs up. A moment later, he propelled them into the boy’s stomach sending him tumbling through the sand as if hit by a bull.
“Why isn’t he using his powers?” asked Arthur upon watching the scene. He could have simply flown away or zapped his opponent from afar. Heck, with a couple of phantasms, this wouldn’t even be a fight.
“He’s just having fun.” said Ana unconcerned. All the family leaders' eyes were currently on the battle, including the Wilsons. Showing too much and especially using his tattoos was risky.
"How the hell are you so fast?" shouted Kai towards the chasing Ethan. After getting up, Charles' subordinate started running in zigzag trying to gain some distance. Thanks to all the enhancements, his body was somehow changing directions without losing speed. He even threw ice shards behind him but to no use.
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Unbeknownst to him, Ethan saw his techniques before they even materialized. As soon as mana moved within the enemy’s body, the teen could predict his next action. As for the difference in speed, from body to mana to level, Ethan outranked him in all of them.
“Just, die!” yelled Kai when his opponent caught up. As if inertia did not apply to him, the boy came to a halt in less than a second and turned around towards Ethan. Before the mage could react, he froze his feet and stabbed the knife towards his chest. However, instead of flesh, paper was cut instead.
“After you.”
Suddenly, the ice beneath Ethan’s feet broke apart, and while a hole was formed in the ground, his opponent got blasted 20 feet away. The knife too flew into the audience almost killing one of the spectators.
“Give Charles my regards!” shouted Ethan while sprinting towards him. Before Kai could regain his balance, a mana infused fist had smashed into his face.
Those watching squirmed as the chase soon turned into a one sided bludgeoning. That first contact led the way to a barrage of punches and kicks that Kai had no way of blocking.
His ears rang from a palm attack. His eyes were closed after a pair of fingers smashed into them.
He tried to summon spells, but every single time, a punch or kick would strike the circuit at the exact spot where it could disrupt it. The fight was so one sided that even the nobles were getting uncomfortable.
“I…”
Kai tried to speak before his jaw was broken in half. His fancy armor lost all semblance of mana and the ring he wore on his middle finger had mysteriously disappeared. Three dozen punches and kicks later, the boy was finally down for the count.
“Is that all your servant’s capable of?” asked Theodore Wilson towards his son.
“That armor should’ve mitigated the damage. And, I gave him several healing and protection scrolls, but…” Before Ethan’s fists, they only delayed the inevitable.
“That youth was holding back,” noted Katherine. “Charles, if you meet him in a match, take out your father's hammer from the beginning.”
“What?” Against a mere commoner, such a thing was unthinkable.
“Do as your mother says.” Theodore agreed. Any one of Ethan’s punches could have finished off his opponent. The only reason he was holding back was to inflict more pain. Since his actual abilities remained a mistery, it would be foolish to take chances.
After a couple of teachers carried the unconscious Kai out of the arena, Ethan jumped through the seats leaving a trail of blood and freaked out spectators all the way back to his friends.
‘Disgusting peasant.’ muttered Charles upon seeing this. Since it would be some time until his turn came up, the noble boy decided to pay his competition a visit.